68 JanuaRY 2008233JN08_p_042-080.indd 6812/21/2007 9:20:09 AM
veddatorialMI Clean InstallBy Dan VeddaMany of us have gotten ourcomputers loaded with viruses,malware, cookies, and corruptedfiles of all sorts. It bogs downyour machine until you can’t getanything done. I have friendswho simply buy a new computerrather than deal with any issuesof repair or maintenance. Insheer economic terms, that maymake sense. Technology advancescheapens things while laborand time get more expensive. Butfor those who can’t afford a newcomputer, a clean install is anoption. Wipe the hard drive andstart from scratch, installing onlythe stuff you want while makingsure it’s working properly.That metaphor has been on mymind as I observe the travails ofour industry. From distributionwoes to bankruptcies, competitionto market shifts, economicdownturns to import scares,we’ve been kicked around a lotthe last few years. Every fewmonths, it seems, the systemlocks up and we reboot, only tohave some other problem arise.To many it seems as thoughwe’re getting nowhere.I think it may be time to stoprebooting and do a “clean install”on our industry. With the NAMMshow in progress, it’s time to talkabout it, if only to get some dialoggoing. I have a few ideas, and Isuspect many will be met withdisbelief or sputtering contemptin some circles. Talk among yourselves,then see what you comeup with. Give me something thatallows the industry to grow, helpshard-working dealers, distributors,and manufacturers becomeprofitable, and raises the profilefor music making. Begin. If youhave the answer, for pity’s sake,speak up.My suggestions are not minealone: pieces of these ideas havebeen voiced from several sources.I’m collecting them here soyou can set one page on the barat the Marriott and not take uptoo much space.Clean install 1: Make everyfranchise available to everydealer on a tiered basis.That’s right. ALL of them—orat least, offer everyone the sameproducts you offer to the entrylevel. Look, we’ve all but erasedfranchises already, since the bignames sell to mass merchants,Internet startups, and nationalchains in lieu of old-school territorialassignments. Let the marketsort itself out and see whathappens. It could be interesting.Offer “full” dealers advantages.Give them status or pricing basedon length of association and dollarvolume. Yes, that may meanGuitar Center still gets betterdeals; but a franchise dealerfor 20 years should also have abetter shot than some yokel witha checkbook and a URL. Callothers “provisional” dealers, andlet them buy product at, say, 10points under MAP (this assumesyou’ve set MAP high enough soall dealers can be profitable).I think it will become apparentwhich dealers are serving theirmarkets and which ones arepropped up by a brand association.People come to me everyweek and ask me to get productsI’m not franchised for, becausethey want to buy from me ratherthan existing dealers. Bring thegame. It will also allow dealerseverywhere to craft a uniquestore identity by choosing productsthey like and can sell to theircustomers.2: Manufacturers—Let dealersbuy based on NEED.Manufacturers, promote theheck out of your wonderful products,and let the dealers buy basedon consumer requests and inventoryneeds. Stop “bundling” colorassortments together, requiring a“carton purchase” (as opposed tooffering an incentive to purchaseone), and foisting a Plan-O-Gramthat ignores the square footage,store demographics, or buyinghistory of your dealer. Offer“mix-n-match” packages and Ithink you’ll see more dealers buymore often. Oh, and if you make amarketing blunder, don’t make thedealers suffer for it.3: Dealers—stop crabbingabout price, and start looking forservice.Folks, this ain’t the ‘80s, so stopbuying like you’re at a flea market.If you want a fair dollar foryour goods, so does the distributorand manufacturer—and if youresent that your customer getsto decide what a “fair dollar” is,don’t think they feel any different.Look for a trade relationshipthat provides reliability, integrity,and convenience, and if you can’tfind it, go somewhere else. If Ican’t trust a vendor, I try to buyas little as possible from them,rather than getting on the phoneand calling them liars and cheats.It sucks the life out of you.4: Manufacturers and dealersalike—LISTEN TO CONSUM-ERS.This industry is horrible whenit comes to paying attention toconsumer needs. We talk in“geekspeak” about everything,tell newbies they don’t know whatthey want, and only embracethose who are like us. Many B&Ostores ignore the kids and dealwith the director. Many guitar anddrum shops revile anyone whodoesn’t “talk the talk.” Many pianostores embrace the craft of sellingrather than the joy of music.Sure, there are exceptions—butif you think you’rean exception, that means you’veseen plenty of bad examples. Weneed to stock our stores to serveconsumer needs, and we need tomake it our business to see thatit’s done properly.5: Grow the market—don’tstretch it.If you aren’t promoting musicmaking in your community,sponsoring events, hosting performances,and doing outreach,you’re a leech. Mailing a checkfor a school program ad is bull.Make some sweat equity happen.Getting a handful of America tobuy more isn’t the solution—it’sgetting everyone in America tobuy some. Stop trying to stealmarket share and start sharingthe market.There: five conversation starters.I could go on, but it’s moreimportant that you go on. Wewant this industry to thrive; let’sget cracking. I know there aregood dealers and manufacturers.I think it’s more importantwe remove the fences and worktogether rather than retreat intodealer or vendor clumps and“defend” ourselves. Let’s get ridof the sludge and reformat now.Dan Vedda is the owner of Skyline<strong>Music</strong> in Westlake, Ohio.<strong>Music</strong> & <strong>Sound</strong> <strong>Retailer</strong> 69Have a product to sell? Need to Hire a New Employee? Contact Linda Inglima, Classified Sales Director, at linglima@testa.com233JN08_p_042-080.indd 6912/21/2007 9:20:11 AM
Change language